To determine its rankings, the Post considers the degree to which disadvantaged students outperform their state peers coupled with percentage of most recent graduates having earned a score of 3 or higher (out of 5 maximum points) on one or more Advanced Placement exams.

[6] In 2011, Maine's male and female AP Scholars were students at Bangor High School.

In 2014, the College Board recognized Bangor as one of 547 US / Canadian District Honor Roll designees, a critical element in the district's selection by the College Board to serve on its national steering committee for its revision of the SAT and the PSAT.

The high school moved into its present building on outer Broadway, designed by architect Eaton W. Tarbell, in 1964.

A source of great pride is the precise arrangement of its state championship banners, which hang on the back wall of the school's Red Barry Gymnasium.

Bangor High School's highest-achieving sport is its Boys Varsity Swim Team.

The speech and debate teams win various competitions across the state during the year and send students to nationals annually.

Most notably, the Bangor Symphony Orchestra held concerts there while the University of Maine's Collins Center for the Arts was being renovated.

The school utilizes locally developed assessments to document student proficiency in Maine learning standards.